INTERVENTION BY THE HOLY SEE DELEGATION
AT THE EIGHTH SPECIAL SESSION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL

ADDRESS OF H.E. MSGR.
SILVANO MARIA TOMASI

Geneva Friday, 28 November 2008

Mr. President,

The daily reports on human suffering in the North Kivu
district of the Democratic Republic of Congo are deeply troubling to the
Delegation of the Holy See. Death, rape, lootings, forced recruitment and
displacement of civilian population have become a daily reality in that country.
The international community cannot stand by idle and needs to speak out clearly.
In fact, with a view on the growing consensus behind the responsibility to
protect, it is of utmost importance for the international community to restore
the rule of law and to search for the common good.

The Holy See condemns the large-scale occurrence of serious violations of
human rights and of humanitarian law. It deplores the recruitment of children
and adolescents as soldiers. It is alarmed by the many cases of torture and
other cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment, including the frequent occurrence
of sexual violence against women and girls by all parties to the conflict. The
international community needs to act swiftly in the face of these grave
infringements of human rights.

Moreover the Holy See denounces the illicit trade of weapons, and in
particular of small arms and light weapons in the DRC. They increase the
intensity of violence and threaten the life and the integrity of a unacceptable
number of innocent people.

The Congolese Bishops issued a Statement saying that the Congolese people
"are living through a genuine human tragedy that, as a silent genocide, is being
carried out under everyone’s eyes"1. While the Holy Father, Benedict
XVI, called upon "all to work together to restore peace, respect for law and the
dignity of every person to that land, for too long martyred"2.

Latest figures show that about 2,000,000 people are forcibly displaced in the
DRC. Their right to food, water, decent work, adequate housing, education, and
health is seriously jeopardized. Many of these displaced end up in camps, where
they can be assisted by the international aid organisations. Others, however,
are less fortunate and cannot be reached by humanitarian agencies because of
on-going fighting between the different factions. It was recently reported that
about 200,000 people are living in the bush and little is known about their
situation.

A positive step has been allowing the ICRC to carry out its humanitarian
mandate. In the same spirit, international humanitarian and human rights
organizations and agencies should be welcomed to carry out their respective
roles to eliminate suffering of people. Moreover, international organizations
and in particular the African Union should strengthen their efforts to achieve a
peaceful solution to the crisis in the DRC.

My Delegation calls upon the warring parties in the Democratic Republic of
Congo to respect the cease-fire that has been reached, and to comply with the
Peace agreements that have been signed in the past. The people of Congo, like
all the people of our planet, have a "sacred right to peace"3. In
order to achieve a stable peace it has to be based upon dialogue and
reconciliation as peace can only be achieved through justice.